Searsucker
Cheddar Puffers (jalapeno)
Brie “triple” + Strawberry jam (toasted baguette)
Eggs + Bacon “pork belly” (brioche + chive brown butter hollandaise)
Short Rib “the harlot” + horseradish + fried onion (polenta + demiglace)
“Cowboy caviar” (fried greens, caramelized onions jam + mustard vinaigrette)
Shrimp “spicy” + Bacon grits (red pepper)
Mushrooms + Burrata + Toast (bitter green salad)
Spinach + Bacon + Mushroom + Sweetbread (egg + buttermilk)
Strawberry + Champagne + Walnut + Goat Cheese (balsamic + streusel)
Jalapeno-chorizo “corn off the cobb” (cream)
Brussel + Walnut (fried garlic)
Mahi “baja” – Drunken cherries + Smokey almonds (citrus + greens)
Duck – White Bean + Confit + Fig (tomato)
Pork butt – Whiskey apples + Bacon Emulsion (fruit puree)
The “ermahgerd” sundae – Peanut butter gelato + Peanut coffee “rocks” + Caramel + Brownies + Bruleed banana
S’mores bar – Graham + Salted caramel ganache + Honey chocolate mousse + Marshmallow + Chocolate ice cream + Cookie crumble
Warm apple crostata – Caramelized grannies + caramel + Oat crumble + Vanilla ice cream
Warm toffee pumpkin pudding cake – Pumpkin tuile + Butter pecan gelato + Gingerbread crumble
Located in Caesars’, and opened by managing partner Hakkasan to coincide with nearby Omnia, celebrity chef Brian Malarkey’s fourth (actually fifth if you count the shuttered Scottsdale experiment) Searsucker bills itself as New American Classic Cuisine, and although the ebb and flow of such restaurants in major Casinos has become a virtual game of ‘who’s who, and who’s new’ an early visit seemed perfectly suited to a nearby concert, myself and three friends sitting down at the end of the open kitchen away from the hustle of a three-deep bar.
Undoubtedly courting the cool kids from the nightclub nextdoor with all sorts of clever libations and a late night menu that goes until 3am, but surprisingly pulling a wide demographic despite loud music ranging from VAST to Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains, it was with greetings from a server ported direct from the San Diego flagship that our dining began and with complimentary cheese puffs tinged in peppers whetting the palate it was not long until Chef JP Labadie stopped by to discuss the menu, a few of our desired items from the online version already culled as the kitchen ramps up to full speed.
Energetic, if not a little bit ‘cramped,’ with plenty of eye candy both on the walls and amongst the service staff it was with appetites gauged and questions answered that an order was formulated and requesting that items be sent out in trios so as not to overwhelm the service was nearly spotless from beginning to end, a high piece of praise in a city where such a thing is quite rare.
Starting with ‘smalls’ before progressing to greens, ocean, farms, ‘and’, and ‘all milk + sugar,’ it was in a trio of Malarkey’s signatures that original opinions were formed and although the brie presented pasty and bland beneath the jam with a substantial delay for an extra piece of bread further marring the experience, no fault could be found in either the ‘harlot’ or the ‘belly,’ both of the expectedly rich proteins featuring great depth of flavor and textbook texture amidst accoutrements lent levity through the utilization of restrained herbs and spice.
Continuing the small plates it was once again a ‘toast’ that proved least impressive of round two, and although the burrata got lost amidst all the fungus and spongy bread just like the brie beneath strawberries both the Searsucker signature Shrimp and Grits as well as the Rocky Mountain Oysters were better than expected, the first for somehow finding a way to reinvent a dish done countless places as a spicy sort of cioppino while the second plated the lightly fried gonads with crispy greens and a tangy vinaigrette plus onion jam that was both smoky and sweet.
Taking a lighter approach, albeit only slightly, course three consisted of three plates focused around vegetables and although prior plates were good it was here that the first two ‘stunners’ arrived, the Strawberry salad a nice and refreshing share plate but the sweetbread salad and spicy pork-infused cream corn undoubtedly stealing all the thunder, the spinach beneath buttermilk and a poached egg with bacon selling itself like an gussied up Lyonnaise with the creamy bits of offal adding just enough funk to let you know they are there.
Onward to mains, savories concluded with a somewhat mixed bag, for as much as I commend the kitchen for serving the duck nearly rare I only wish the effort would have been rewarded by accoutrements that served to accent rather than overwhelm, a theme of sweetness and smoke also found in the braised Pork Butt and seared Mahi, though with far more restraint – the fish in particular perhaps the best of its kind with boozy cherries finding a deft dance partner in charred white flesh.
Unwilling and unable to forgo sweets, particularly at a place so routinely celebrated for its pastry program, it was with some restraint that I avoided requesting ‘the lot,’ but still investing heavily in 4/6 of the selections one would be hard pressed to name a single plate that failed to shine, even the seemingly overwrought sundae presenting a lovely blend of textures and flavors with more than enough to share while both the crostata and pumpkin cake were unassuming yet perfect, the heavy hitting S’mores bar a dish best shared, though so compelling as a result of the combination of honey, caramel, and chocolate that none will be left on the plate regardless of stomach capacity or party size.
THREE AND A HALF STARS: Already functioning at a high level, and seemingly willing to take *some* chances without going ‘all in,’ Searsucker enters a market crowded with several similar restaurants and with longtime Las Vegas Chef Labadie at the helm an early look gives one hope that this won’t just be another absentee landlord hotspot for pre-and-post-club noshing, a decision likely to be made by the powers that be in upcoming months as feedback and finances curate the cuisine.
RECOMMENDED: Mahi “baja,” Spinach + Bacon + Mushroom + Sweetbread, Jalapeno-chorizo “corn off the cobb,” Eggs + Bacon “pork belly,” S’mores bar, Warm toffee pumpkin pudding cake.
AVOID: Brie “triple” + Strawberry jam, Duck, Mushrooms + Burrata + Toast
TIP: The online menu contains many fallacies and fails to mention that the happy hour deals are only offered to those seated or standing around the bar, a ‘buyer beware’ to those looking to order specific things or dine at a deal.
WHAT THE STARS MEAN: 5 World Class, 4 Excellent, 3 Good, 2 Fair, 1 Poor
http://searsucker.com/las-vegas/
